Teacher tells students she won’t assign any homework this year

Homework is seen as a necessary evil by most students, but is it really necessary?

Brandy Young, a second-grade teacher in Texas, says she doesn’t think so. So she decided she wasn’t assigning any to her class this school year. She informed parents of her decision in a note that has now gone viral.

Many have praised the decision online, with some saying they grew up with the same policy and loved it, while others wished their own children’s teachers would think the same way. The note is apparently right that there are no conclusive studies that say homework improves academic performance.

“Finally more teachers are catching on to this!” One user wrote on Facebook. “Our school has been like this for years, it’s sooo much better!”

Young told PopSugar that she was trying to be innovative.

“As a mom and as a teacher, (I found that) a lot of homework just wasn’t necessary, and it wasn’t the right thing for my students,” Young said. “Lower elementary school students are here all day with us, so I think it’s our job to educate them here and when they go home they have other things they need to learn there.”

The mother who posted the note online, Samantha Gallagher, said her daughter Brooke has had homework since she started preschool.

“I’m really happy that at the end of a long school day, (Brooke will) have time just to come home and be a kid, play outside, and make new friends,” Gallagher told PopSugar. “I believe it will enable us to spend more time in the evening together.”

This story was originally published August 22, 2016 at 4:55 PM with the headline "Teacher tells students she won’t assign any homework this year."